Nursing conference draws enthusiastic crowd
Ore than 120
nurses, students, and those interested in health care recently gathered at San Diego State University Imperial Valley for the 14th Annual EvidenceBased Nursing Conference to learn, network, and be inspired to LEAD.
LEAD, as in “IV Nurses LEAD: Leveraging, Education and Determinants of Health to Improve the Health and Wellness of Imperial Valley Residents,” was the conference’s theme. It also was the subject of keynote addresses given by Dr. Karen Macauley, SDSU School of Nursing director, and Dr. Helina Hoyt, SDSU Imperial Valley nursing program coordinator. Hoyt also is cofounder and codirector of the SDSU IV RISE (Research, Innovation, and Student Engagement) Center. The center develops and launches lasting solutions to the rural border county’s health disparities.
Speaking to the largest crowd ever to attend the annual conference, Hoyt said nurses are uniquely positioned to identify problems and lead the implementation of health care solutions.
Macauley outlined accomplishments already grown from academic and
community health care collaborations for the enthusiastic audience that included former students, some of whom are Nurse Practitioners practicing in the Valley.
For instance, SDSU Imperial Valley now offers an M.S. in Nursing Leadership. A new cohort will begin in fall 2022. SDSU Imperial Valley also offers an RN to BSN degree for students who graduate from Imperial Valley College’s two-year nursing program. And IVC nursing students can simultaneously take one course a semester at SDSU Imperial Valley to accelerate completing a BSN degree.
Yet, Macauley and Hoyt stressed the need to do more to bolster the nursing workforce in the rural border county that the state considers a severe RN shortage area.
“COVID magnified Imperial County’s nursing shortage and uncovered significant healthcare gaps and health disparities., Hoyt said.
The SDSU Imperial Valley School of Nursing launched a “Nurses Now” effort with community health care partners to develop solutions to the nursing shortage. Local partners favored “growing our own” nursing workforce to reduce the significant turnover of nurses who do not reside in the region.
As a result, a new, accelerated pre-licensure BSN program will be offered at SDSU Imperial Valley through the SDSU School of nursing. The program is expected to start in fall 2022 at the Brawley campus, pending final approval by the full California Board of Registered Nursing on May 19.
With a year- round course schedule, first-year students admitted to the program will graduate in three years. Both first-year and transfer students who qualify for California State University admission and meet program-specific prerequisites are eligible for admission.
The conference also featured a series of breakout sessions on several topics: Imperial Valley Nursing Innovation Despite the Pandemic; Community Engaged, Person- Centered Care Approaches; and Building Multi-Sector, Rural-Border Health Research Innovation, and Student Engagement in Imperial County.